How to Cook Asparagus

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Categories: Vegetables | How Tos | Food & Drink

  • How to Cook Asparagus will give you step-by-step guidelines for buying and preparing this delicious and versatile vegetable. It will also point you to great recipes for cooking asparagus as a side dish, in salads, as a soup and with meats.

  • Introduction

    • Most people love asparagus, but tend to cook it the same way all the time. But, don't sell the spears short! Asparagus is one of the most versatile and delightful veggies around. Citrus-flavored sauces, roasted nuts or hollandaise bring out different shades of flavor. And, did you know it comes in green, white and purple varieties? Asparagus is also an excellent source of fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and other vitamins and minerals. So, what are you waiting for? It's time to cook some asparagus.

  • Step 1: How to Buy Asparagus

    (Creative Commons photo by 46137)
    • Ideally, you'll buy fresh asparagus and prepare it the same day, but you can find frozen spears all year round.
    1. In Season: Fresh asparagus is in season from late February through June.
    2. Off Season: You can buy asparagus canned or frozen, or find fresh asparagus grown in a hothouse or imported from warmer climates.
    3. How Much?: The general rule is 1.5 pounds of asparagus for 4 people.
    4. Thick or Thin?: The size of the asparagus you buy has more to do with personal preference than taste. Martha Stewart says the thick stalks are often just as tender and delicious as the thin ones.
    5. Tips: Whichever size stalk you choose, the tips should be closed.
    6. Eat Fresh: Although you can store asparagus for 3-5 days in the refrigerator, you should cook it as soon as possible to take full advantage of its great flavor!
    7. Storage: According to Martha Stewart, asparagus will keep for up to five days in the refrigerator.
      • You can stand the bunch upright in a wide, tall drinking glass with an inch or two of water at the bottom of the glass. Cover the tips loosely with a baggie to protect them from contamination.
      • Another option is to wrap the bottoms of the stalks in a wet paper towel and put the whole bunch in a paper bag or an airtight plastic container. The idea is to keep the asparagus moist, and separate it from other refrigerated produce.

  • Step 2: How to Prepare Asparagus for Cooking

    (Creative Commons photo by Bethany)
    • Preparing your asparagus is a breeze and won't take a significant amount of time.
    1. Cut or snap off the ends of your stalks.
      • If you choose to snap instead of cut, an asparagus stalk snaps easily right about where the color changes.
    2. As you would with any fresh vegetable, rinse asparagus thoroughly in the sink before cooking.
      • Since asparagus grows in sandy soil, this is really important—you don't want grit in your veggies!
    3. Eating Well recommends that you peel the asparagus so that it cooks evenly. This is not strictly necessary, but if you want to try the technique, peel off the outer skin of each stalk with a paring knife or peeler, from just below the tip to the snapped-off end.
    4. If your recipe calls for cut asparagus, cut the spears at an angle, not straight across.

  • Step 3: How to Cook Green Asparagus

    (Creative Commons photo by Jef Poskanzer)
    • Having asparagus on hand gives you a quick way to spice up any meal. Some recipes focus on letting the natural flavor come through, others coat the vegetable with exotic sauces. You can prepare asparagus to serve as a side dish, accent a roast, add variety to a salad and much more.

  • Boiling Asparagus

    1. Drop spears into boiling water.
    2. Reduce heat.
    3. Cook for 5-8 minutes.
      • If you like your asparagus a bit crunchy, rather than soft, cook for five minutes.
    4. When the time's up, drain your asparagus.
    5. Drizzle with olive oil and salt & pepper, and serve.

  • Steaming Asparagus

    • Steaming is another easy method that retains fresh asparagus' vitamins and nutrients. Steaming also brings out the sweetness in thicker green stalks. Some specialty cooking stores, such as iKitchen, carry asparagus steamers for a very reasonable price, but any large (2-quart minimum) saucepan and steamer basket will do.
    1. Boil about 1 inch of water under a steamer basket, then reduce heat to simmer.
    2. If the pot is tall enough, tie the asparagus together and stand it upright in the basket.
    3. If the pot is not that tall, arrange the spears in a layer on the bottom of the basket.
    4. Cover the pot.
    5. Cook for 6-8 minutes.

  • Boiled and Steamed Asparagus Recipes

    (Creative Commons photo by 46137)
    • You can use boiled and steamed asparagus in a variety of ways!
    1. Salads: This recipe for Asparagus, Green Onion, Cucumber and Herb Salad from Epicurious and other recipes from the Food and Wine website give a good idea of how asparagus can be used in salads.
      • To prepare asparagus spears for a salad, boil or steam them no more than 2-3 minutes.
    2. Appetizer: For a crunchy appetizer, check out the recipe for Parboiled Asparagus as made by Selland's Cafe in Sacramento.
    3. Hollandaise: Plain, boiled asparagus becomes chic and elegant with hollandaise sauce—here's the Recipe Tips directions.
    4. Pasta: Asparagus works well in pasta or risotto. In this recipe for Asparagus Pesto with Pasta, you parboil the spears while pan-roasting pine nuts. Like almonds, pine nuts taste heavenly with asparagus. For risotto, try this Food Network recipe for Wild Mushroom and Asparagus Risotto. Note that the asparagus is the last ingredient added, as it cooks so quickly.

  • Grilling Asparagus

    (Creative Commons photo by Jennifer)
    • Grilling is perfect for thin asparagus stalks, but thicker spears tend to burn on the outside before cooking through. Stick to boiling if you have a bunch of thick asparagus.
    1. Even thin stalks should be boiled for one minute, then dipped into cold water before being grilled.
    2. Spray the grill with cooking spray or oil.
    3. Put thinner spears on the grill for 2-3 minutes on one side, then turn them over. Be sure to put them crosswise to the grill bars, so they don't fall through.
    4. Grill the other side for 2-3 minutes, and they're done.
      • As with boiled asparagus, you can add a sauce: hollandaise, olive oil, barbecue sauce, or even mayonnaise.

  • Roasting Asparagus

    • Most food sites feature a recipe for Oven Roasted Asparagus:
    1. Preheat an oven to 400 degrees.
    2. In a bowl, toss the asparagus spears with salt, pepper, and olive oil.
      • Some recipes suggest adding a bit of balsamic vinegar as well.
    3. Arrange the spears in a roasting pan or baking sheet.
    4. Put them in the preheated oven.
    5. After 10 minutes, move the spears around, either by shaking the pan or using tongs, so that they cook evenly.
    6. Cook for 20-25 minutes total.

  • Grilling and Roasting Asparagus Recipes

    • Plain grilled asparagus too tame for you? Check out these recipes!
    1. Try the Grilled Asparagus with Barbecue Butter from the Food Network show Down Home with the Neelys.
    2. Martha Stewart offers a recipe for a one-pan wonder meal combining asparagus with Roast Chicken, Potatoes and Lemon. Simply Recipes has a similar one-pan meal made with Salmon, Asparagus, and New Potatoes.

  • More Ways to Cook Asparagus

    (Creative Commons photo by Stef Yau)
    • There are so many ways to cook asparagus and so many foods you can add it to that we can't list them all! But here's a few:
    1. Soup: Want soup? Simply Recipes features a Creamy Asparagus Soup that calls for sauteeing the asparagus with butter and onions. Since the asparagus cooks so quickly, you add it after the onions have softened.
    2. Quiche: You've probably enjoyed asparagus in quiche. There's no special magic involved; jut cut it up and add it raw to your favorite quiche recipe before baking. For a really rich dish, try the Asparagus and Goat Cheese Tart from the Food and Wine website.
    3. Guacamole: How about Asparagus Guacamole? Vegetarian1 has the recipe! For this, you'll boil the asparagus for 8-10 minutes to get it nice and mushy.
    4. Stir Fry: Asparagus makes a tasty addition to stir-fry, as in this recipe for Flank Steak Stir Fry. Note that the asparagus must be parboiled for two minutes before going into the frying pan or wok.
    5. Microwave: Better at microwaving than conventional cooking? Asparagus can be nuked! According to Recipe Tips, you can put a pound of asparagus into a microwave bowl with 1/4 cup water. Try to arrange the asparagus so that the tips are in the center of the bowl. Snap the cover on the bowl and microwave on high for 4-8 minutes, stopping and stirring once. If the asparagus is already cut up, make that 3 to 6 minutes.

  • Step 4: White and Purple Asparagus Recipes

    • (Creative Commons photo by Leon Brocard)
    • Green asparagus is most common type of asparagus, and most recipes assume that this is what you'll be cooking with, but there are other varieties to consider:
    • White Asparagus: White asparagus is grown underground, without sunlight. The white is hard to find in some areas, but some people prefer it to green asparagus because it's not as sweet.
    • Purple Asparagus: Purple asparagus was developed in Italy. It is sweeter than the green variety and turns green when cooked unless vinegar or lemon juice is added.
    • Special recipes have been developed to take full advantage of the special flavor and look of both white and purple asparagus.

  • White Asparagus

    1. Chef Jean George Vongerichten points out that white asparagus is tougher than green and must be peeled and cooked thoroughly—not left crunchy. In an interview with Food and Wine, he demonstrates how his mother would cook white asparagus is a roux, then cover the spears with country ham and a gratin sauce.
    2. Lemon and citrus fruits bring out the flavor of all asparagus, but even more so with the white spears. Martha Stewart uses citrus as a sauce over steamed white asparagus in this recipe for White Asparagus with Orange Butter.
    3. Here is Wolfgang Puck's simple recipe for Austrian White Asparagus with Brown Butter Sauce. Note that he advises lining, or peeling, the asparagus before boiling it for 10-12 minutes—twice as long as green asparagus would be cooked.

  • Purple Asparagus

    • A fairly new product, purple asparagus has more sugar and less fiber than other varieties. It cooks as fast as green asparagus, but to keep it purple, lemon juice or vinegar must be added while boiling.
    1. Delicious Days blog has a recipe for an Asparagus Tortilla and Red Chilis.
    2. What's Cooking America recommends purple asparagus be used for its simple-but-rich Asparagus Milanese, though green will also work. This side dish covers the spears in a cheese sauce, topped with eggs.
    3. Once you've tasted the sweeter purple variety, try exchanging green for purple in some of your asparagus recipes. This works because the cooking times are the same.

  • Conclusion

    • Now that you've had a quick tour, explore the sites listed in our Resources section—all of them list many recipes for asparagus. If you need more ideas about how to cook asparagus, you might want to travel to Stockton, California and sample the deep-fried asparagus at the Stockton Asparagus Festival, held on the last full weekend of every April!

  • Resources for How to Cook Asparagus

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